The Outcasts
by BlackBlueEyes
Summary: It is in human nature to cluster together. Normally we do this based on similar interests, jobs, hobbies, or just where we are. Today we have three broad main groups: civilians, heroes, and villains. But there are some that don't fall into any of these categories. People who felt that they never fit into anywhere. That's where we come in. Who are we? We're the Outcasts. OC centric
1. The Beginning

**Cole's POV**

 _Clack, clack, clack, clack._

Fast footsteps echo through the dark alleyway. The full moon overhead was blocked by sky-high buildings and city smog but there was still enough light to for me to see the fleeing figure below me. Looking down the barrel of my gun, I pull the trigger. The figure lets out a shout as it collapses.

Static crackles in my ear. _"Dammit Longshot. I had that one."_

Letting out a snort, I quickly dissemble my sniper and start my way down the fire escape. "Didn't look like that from where I was Lady. He was about to get away from you."

There was a thump next to me as Lady jumps down from the fence. Her yellow-green cat eyes glare at me and she lets out a growl. Crossing her arms, she says, "It's no fun when you do it quickly."

"You shouldn't play with your food," I comment, walking over to the injured criminal. When he sees me approaching, he tries frantically to crawl away. Shaking my head, I deliver a quick kick to his head, effectively knocking him out. "Whiplash and Glitch got the rest?"

"Yep," Lady answers, stalking forward to tie the guy up. "Stop being such a worrywart. It was only a small burglary, nothing we haven't seen before."

I give her a small frown. "I'm not a worrywart. If anything happened, Swan and Phoenix would kill me." _And no one would ever find the body._ I shiver at the thought as Lady lets out a bark of laughter.

There's a rush of wind and two spandex-clad teens appear in front of us. A petite figure in a circuit board patterned bodysuit jumps out of the arms of the larger one dressed in a black and blue outfit similar to the Flash's. Whiplash plasters a lopsided grin to his face and gives me a mock solute. "Everything's cleaned up, Boss."

"More like tied up," Glitch's robotic voice jokes. Hiding my amusement, I roll my eyes at while I bend down to double check Lady's knots.

Whiplash appears next to me and leans over to peer at he injured criminal. "I can see that Luck didn't have much luck with hers."

"I would've gotten him if _someone_ wasn't too eager to step in," Lady growls pointedly at me. "And you guys need to agree on what to call me. It gets confusing when one person calls me Lady and someone else calls me Luck."

"We could always just call you L Squared like Jester does," Glitch suggests. "It's your fault anyways for picking a two-part name."

"Yeah, look where it gets Baby Flasher," Whiplash adds, shaking his head sadly. "No one can get his name right."

"Including you," I say, giving him a little slap on the head as I pass him. "Now stop chatting. Let's head back to base."

Lady falls into step next to me, muttering something about how Swan and Doc don't have problem with their names. Letting out a sigh, I roll my eyes at the brunette's antics. A couple seconds pass before I feel Glitch brush against my arm as she skips past. "I wonder if the others ran into anything," the blond wanders out loud.

"This is Blüdhaven," I answer. "I'm sure they found something."

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the four of us walk finally walk into Base. Surprisingly, the only other person there was Phoenix, who was watching the monitors when we entered but looked up to give us a friendly wave. "There you guys are! You're the last back."

"Really?" Whiplash asks, voicing all our surprise, pulling down his cowl to reveal a mop of brown hair. "I thought we were back pretty early."

Phoenix's amber eyes darken for a second before she gives him a smile and shrugs her shoulders. "It was a quiet night. Be happy, that means you have more time to study for that test you have tomorrow."

Sam groans as he heads to the changing rooms. "Don't remind me, I still have to read all of _The Scarlett Letter_ tonight."

Scowling, I shout at him. "I thought you said that you finished reading that last week!"

His laugh echoes through the basement and a second later, I feel a gust of wind and hear the door to the house open and shut. I glare at the stairs. _Damn lazy speedster, he should be focusing more in school._

"Wow, you really are a mom," Ebony teases as she passes me. "Come on Freddie, I'll make you some food."

The blond races past me to meet the older meta on the stairs, leaving me and Des alone. Thinking back at her words, I frown again. Blüdhaven was never quiet; it was worse than Gotham on a good day. Walking up behind Des, I ask the winged girl, "Do you think something's up?"

She hums and I hear her feathers rustle a little. _So that's a yes_. "Crime rates been down for the last couple weeks. And anything that happens is minor, even the police could deal with it."

Frowning, I cross my arms and look at the dots on the screen myself. They're the record we had of the crimes happening in the city. Alarm bells ring in my head. Right now, there was only a handful of dots scattered across the map, nothing like what it usually is like. Something big looked like it was about to go down.

"Where's Riley?"

"She's doing another round, trying to see if she can find anything out," Des answers. Even though the half-breed was acting calm, I could still see the tenseness in her shoulders.

"Do you want me to put out some feelers?" I offer. She gives me a smile in appreciation and I make a mental note to call some of my contacts later.

Des looks back at the screen and I see her eyes shift again. She rests her chin on her hands and continues to watch the screen. "I just hope whatever is going on isn't big enough to attract the League's attention."

I narrow my eyes and force myself not to growl. We've thankfully managed not to attract the Big Guys' attention for this long but if something really was going on, it might attract them to Blüdhaven, which would probably lead to a run in with them. Hopefully if they decided to intervene, they would only send the kiddies and not actual Leaguers. Even then there was too much of a chance of an accidental encounter.

"Don't worry," Des says firmly, interrupting my thoughts. "I deal with them if it comes to that."

I give her a look out of the corner of my eye. "We'll deal with them together like we always do." She gives me a disapproving glare and opens her mouth to say something. Before she can reprimand me, I start to walk to the dressing rooms. "I'm going up to check up on the others. Make sure Riley doesn't stay out too late."

I feel amber eyes on back as I walk away. I know Des wanted to argue, saying she was the oldest and the leader so it should be her responsibility, but we were a family. We would deal with whatever came our way together.


	2. The Informant

**Riley's POV**

Standing in a freezing warehouse was not how I wanted to spend my Friday night. The cold was seeping into my insulated-suit and my fingertips and toes have long gone numb. If Jess was here, he would be jumping around to keep himself warm while whining my ear off about what he would do for a cup of hot coco. So definitely not fun. But it was the best chance of learning what was happening.

Knowing this, I came to the meet up place early and settled myself up in a corner with a view of the entire warehouse while also having enough shadows to not be easily seen. When my informant enters, I even my breathing and keep myself still. As the minutes ticked on, the informant started pacing and the room becomes even colder. Static crackles in my ear, ' _All clear_ ,' and I step out of the shadows and into the light.

My informant hands fly up when she notices me, powers cackling to life. Crossing my arms, I raise a hidden eyebrow at her. Realizing who approached her, she lowers her hands and the room warms a little, but I'm not fooled. I know that in a split second, she could change from seemly relaxed to trying to turn me into a giant ice cube.

"About time you showed up," Killer Frost spits out at me. Her blue lips twitch into a frown at the little snort I let out.

Covering my amusement, I start stalking towards her. "What do you want to tell me?" She lets out a little huff and crosses her arms. Dark eyes train on me as I circle her. Stopping in front of her, I put my hands behind my back. "I'm waiting."

"You know, I could just walk out of here without telling you anything. Leave you and your little freaks to chase your tails," she says, eyes cold and smirking. "So, I would stop being all high and mighty if I were you."

"That is true, but I also didn't ask you to be here." I know Frost doesn't like my teammates, particularly Jessie, so I was surprised when I got a message saying she knew something and wanted to share. Tilting my head, I continue, "Since we're on that subject, why _are_ you here?"

A blue blush shades her face and she quickly looks to the side. "Stormy wanders a lot and sometimes comes out to Bludhaven to patrol, if you haven't noticed. This could potentially affect him," she mumbles before straightening. "Also, they have Icy, Jr. and we ice villains need to stick together."

My eyes narrow. "Who's ' _they'_ and why do they have Cameron?"

* * *

I step out of the warehouse with my head spinning.

Killer Frost left soon after explaining the whole story and giving a vague threat to keep an eye out for Firestorm. It took me a long time after she left to center myself again.

I'm not sure how well I succeeded.

Shaking my head, I start making my way back to Base, half forming plans already. As I pass through a damp alley, something large lands next to me.

"Do you think she was telling the truth?"

I peer out of the corner of my eye to look at Longshot. Even with his goggles and black cloth pulled over the bottom part of his face, I could make out the worried expression he had. Straightening up, I stiffly reply.

"We still need to double check some things, but I think it would be safe to assume what she was telling the truth. It's no secret that she has a soft spot for Firestorm."

"It's also no secret that she doesn't like Jester. Or really any of us. It could be a trap."

"Yes, it could," I agree. "That's why we're doublechecking. But it doesn't make sense why she added Cameron into it then. They haven't got along since the Belle Rev fiasco."

Longshot shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe to make it more convincing?"

"Maybe but we still should tell Phoenix and look into it. Just in case."


	3. Nightmares and Reassurances

**Riley's POV**

A light tapping wakes me from my sleep. Trying to blink the blurriness away, I roll over and glance at the clock.

 _1:48_

My groan must've woken up my bedmate. An arm and a wing wrap around me while a weight settles on my shoulder. "You should probably go get that," Des mumbles into my shoulder. "It's Jessie and Freddie."

A frown etches its way onto my face. Removing myself from the furnace that was Des, I swing my feet off the bed and make my way to the door. The knocking quiets as I get closer and I creak open the door to two sets of puppy dog eyes.

"Nightmares?" Nods. Letting out a sigh, I usher the two blondes inside the room before closing the door. Freddie immediately makes her way to the bed and under Des's wing with Jessie not far behind. Letting a small smile on my face at the sight, I quietly follow.

"Do either of you want to talk about it?"

Freddy shakes her head while Jessie just responds with "the usual." Sighing, I rub Jessie's back as he settles on my chest. I start to hum a Russian lullaby to help calm them even more. After a few verses, I hear Freddy's breathing even out as she falls asleep and Jessie relaxes a bit.

A soft voice interrupts my singing. Tilting my head down, I see tired green eyes peering up at me. "Why was Noise over today?"

"She was double-checking something for us," I reply, running my fingers through his hair. It was true. Yesterday, Raven asked the anti-hero to find out if what Killer Frost said was true. Unfortunately, it was and it was apparently worse than what Frost thought.

"Is the Justice League getting involved?"

"We hope not. We'll deal with it if they do though."

"Will I have to go back to my dad?"

My breath catches in my throat and I pull Jessie closer to me. Beside me, I feel Des shift so we're closer to her and Freddy. "No. You're going to stay right where you belong. Here. With us."

When Jessie finally falls asleep, I lean down and kiss his forehead. "I'll kill the Joker before I ever let you go back to him." I mean every word. Des hums in agreement and tightens her grip on the two kids.

"We'll burn the whole world if we have to."

* * *

The next day before we go out for patrols, Des calls a group meeting. I watch from my position by the wall as everyone gets themselves situated in their various spots across the room.

Sam stole one of the chairs and was able to pull Mason into his lap. Scarlet and Ebony sat close by them and entertained themselves by feigning disgust while the two boys whisper and smile at each other. Raven (with Alex in their pocket) and Marinette shared one of the couches while Cole sprawled across the other one. Raven laughs when Jessie and Freddie finish running around and fling themselves on the sniper.

"As I'm sure everyone knows, we've been investigating the recent decrease in crime," Des starts as soon as everyone gets settled, her face and tone completely serious. Everyone's eyes focus on her. "Killer Frost was able to inform us that the Light set up another genetics lab here in Bludhaven. They have been abducting young and homeless metahumans to experiment on. Noise was able to confirm this. We believe that they are trying to come up something to combat the Justice League and their younger team. Knowing that, we also have a suspicion they might try to come after us."

You could hear a pin drop by how quiet it was. I shift from my leaning position to stand next to Des. "Des's and Cole's team are going to patrol as normal tonight. We want everyone to be on high alert when they are out there." I turn my head, making eye contact with everyone.

"What are we doing?" Jessie asks, squirming until he was sitting up.

"We are going to go and meet up with Noise. Then we're going to stake out where we think the lab is. Hopefully, we'll be able to get enough information that we can shut it down quickly and without attracting attention."

"I want all teams to have comms. on and be ready to respond to anything at any time," Des adds. 'Yes's and 'yeah's and 'sure's fill the room and there are a couple nods. "Okay, lets go save some butts then." With that everyone jumps into action.

Next to me, Des lets out a long, heavy sigh. Her eyes were sad and her shoulders and wings were drooping. I barely realize what I'm doing as I reach out and grasp her wrist before I realize what I'm doing. Rubbing my thumb over the ginger's pulse point, I try to give her a reassuring smile. "Everything is going to end up fine."

She looks up, deep amber eyes boring into me. Her face was still full of doubt and the heaviness was lingering but the corners of Des's mouth twitch up. I slide my fingers down until they are intertwined with hers. Giving one last squeeze, I let go and pull my mask over my mouth and nose before flicking my hood up. Des's smile is quickly obscured as she puts on her helm.

"I know. Our family pulls through everything." Phoenix strides past me to our underground entrance. I stare after her as she disappears, Doc and the twins close behind. Trying to ignore the buzzing in the back of my head, I survey the room, making eye contact with Longshot, before gathering my own team and heading out.


	4. Lots of Noise-Start of Some Chaos

**Raven's POV**

Noise leads us to a lab at the edge of the city that Lex built to help promote that he was creating jobs and boosting the economy in this area. Contrary to what he was telling the press, Baldy brought in scientists from other cities and was only hiring the locals as janitors and to run the cafeteria. Ass.

Riley ordered us in various points around the perimeter with strict orders to observe not act. She set me up at one of the side entrances and Alex was getting a birds-eye view. Snickering quietly at my own pun, I shift forward a bit and adjust my binoculars. Irritation (and a little bit of hidden amusement) run through me and Alex's bond. The next time the raven passes by, I stick my tongue out at the demon.

Static jolts me from my teasing. _"I think I got a hidden entrance here at the back,"_ Jessie informs us.

 _"They probably aren't going to do anything illegal where we can see."_ Russian curses fill the line for a couple seconds.

 _"That means we have to go in blind."_

I could tell that she didn't like that idea. Hell, I didn't like that idea. Tapping my own comm., I get into the conversation. "If we need floor plans, Diablo can slip in unnoticed and look around for a bit, get a feel of the land, then slip out again." There's a second of silence where I can feel Riley thinking. Before she replies, I add, "He's almost as hard to kill as Phoenix and I can feel if he needs any help."

 _"Does he have his comm. on him?"_ I let out a snort. Riley sighs at that. _"Of course he doesn't."_ She lets out another sigh and I can hear something shuffle over the line. _"Fine but tell him I want him out at the first hint of trouble."_

 _"Rodger that."_

With that, I tune out the rest of the conversation (mostly Jessie's rambling with spaced replies from Noise at this point) and wave for Alex to come over. Kali and Jamie coil tighter around my neck as he comes closer and even lets out a hiss as he lands on the railing, not even bothering to shift forms. I stoke them under their chins to calm them as I relate the plan and Riley's warning to him. The demon was mostly bemused and reluctantly agrees before flapping off again.

I spend the next couple minutes half listening into the conversation over the comms., a tense stillness falling on me. Even though I could still feel him through the bond, it was still hard to not having Alex in my sight. It brought back memories of panic, screams, pain, and fear. I wanted to project my feelings, wanting to receive some reassurance, but I had to stop them from bleeding into the bond, not wanting to distract the demon.

 _"You doing okay, Beasty?"_ Noise voice cuts through my anxiety. Hearing her voice calms me a little and I take a deep breath before responding.

"Yeah, just forgot how hard it was to be separated." Taking another breath, I try to bring some laughter back into my voice. "He's okay so far, almost got stepped on though."

Noise and Jessie burst into quiet laughing and even Riley lets out a chuckle at the news. Controlling herself, Noise responds, _"Oh, I'm so going to tease him about that later."_

A freezing wave is the only warning I get before I feel a huge surge in magic. Letting out a startled gasp, I force my legs to get moving. As I scrambled to the ground, alarms blared through the air. Sprinting, I get to the back of the building before the first scientist bursts through the side fire door.

 _"What the hell was that?!"_ Riley barks.

"Alex reacted to something. I'm not sure what but he's angry."

 _"Shit! Jester get that door open!"_

"Already on it!" Jester bursts past me, a streak of color, pulling things out of his bag and haphazardly sticking them to the door. Reluctantly, I stop a few feet and began surveying the area around us, hands up, ready to react to any threat. There's a little shout of triumph before a small hand grabs my elbow and tugs me away and down.

 ** _Boom!_**

I feel the heat of the blast on my back and I tug Jessie underneath me, blocking him from any debris. When the chaos calms a little, Jessie squirms free from my grip, a grin lighting up his face as he surveys his handiwork. I know I should be scolding him for making even more noise, but I was ready to crush him in a hug when I realized I was able to see white halls.

Riley and Noise show up at that moment, stopping me from rushing into the building. Kali hisses in response to my frustration but Noise keeps a hand on my shoulder until Riley calls the all-clear. Even then she sticks close as I run in, following the bond to Alex.

Riley shouts at us to wait but I ignore her and keep plowing into the building. Flinging myself around a corner, I almost run into a guard. In his shock, it takes him a second before he raises his gun and by then I've already flung my hands up. Vines and roots break through the floor and wrap around the surprised guard, forcing him to drop his gun. He lets out a shot before a vine slithers around his mouth.

Noise tugs me back around the corner as shots ring through the air. Jessie and Riley catches up then, the later shooting me a dark look as they crouch behind us. Noise searches through a pocket in her belt and pulls out a couple of silver ball looking things. Pressing a button on one of them, she turns and flings them towards the shooters before ducking next to me again. The shooting continues for a few seconds before cutting off into screams then silence.

Riley pushes on my shoulder to keep me down as she peers around the corner to make sure the coast was clear. When she's done, she uses her grip to hoist me up and slam me into the wall. I gasp as the pain registers, but she doesn't loosen her grip.

"When I say wait, you wait," she snarls. Anger courses through me (mine or Alex's, I'm not sure) and I open my mouth to hiss at her but she cuts me off. "I know you're worried and scared but that does not give you the right to endanger the rest of us. Do you understand me?" Mostly angry but now a little ashamed, I give her a nod and push her away from me. Her midnight eyes narrow underneath her hood. "No more running off. We are in unfamiliar enemy territory, we're getting through it _together_. Can you tell where Diablo is? Good. Lead and then we'll get the hell out of here."

This time I wait for her to signal before I start going down the hall again. The guards that were shooting were now all knocked out thanks to Noise's contraption. The three of us carefully step over and around the bodies while Jessie just strolled down the hall with hidden glee, stepping on backs, faces, and appendages along the way. Riley pauses at one, ducking down to rummage through his coat and belt. When she straightens up, a security pass is between her fingers.

Following the bond, I go straight down the hall and turn a couple corners before arriving at a stairwell. Footsteps echoed up and I pulled back from the railing to avoid being caught. There's the sound of a door opening and slamming shut then it was silent again.

Pushing past me, Riley carefully peers down the stairs. She turns back to me and asks, "Do you know how far down he is?"

I close my eyes and focus on the bond. Opening them, I try to keep my voice as soft as hers, "Too far to be the floor below us but he's still close. I think he's two floors down."

"Okay," she takes another look. "Let's go."


	5. OC List

**As promised, here's the OC list. Because I was kind of loopy when I wrote it (and because I didn't want it to be boring to read), the format for this is basically me asking a question and then the character answering. So sorry if they are very sarcastic. If you are still confused, please PM me or leave me a comment and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. If I ever edit this chapter, I will make a notice in one of the other chapters author notes.**

 **In other news, I got a beta reader for this story! G** **regorybryce9 will be beta-ing any future chapters. Please give them a big round of applause and lots of thanks!**

 **I'll stop talking now. Toodles! ~Sid**

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Phoenix

 _What's your civilian name?_ Desdemona Abilene

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Call me Des or Jinx unless you want me to break a couple of your bones

 _What is your species?_ Phoenix (That means I'm part-angel, part-demon, you dumbass)

 _How old are you?_ _Waaaay_ older than you. Look like I'm in my early twenties though

 _What are your powers?_ Empath, pyrokinesis, magic, super strong, flight (what did you think the wings were for?) Oh, yeah, I also don't stay dead (death doesn't love me as much as I love her :'()

 _What's your position in the team?_ I'm the leader and when we're separated into teams, I'm in charge of Team Zhayedan: Banshee, Siren, Witch Doctor and me

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ No but I am the legal guardian for the twins and Freddie though.

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Black Swan

 _What's your civilian name?_ Riley Markov

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ No

 _What is your species?_ Human

 _How old are you?_ Nineteen

 _What are your powers?_ I don't have any, but I am a master of an array of weapons and fighting styles and a bomb expert.

 _What's your position in the team?_ I'm Des's Second-in-Command and oversee Team Spetsnaz which consists of Jester, Diablo, Beast and myself

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ Nyssa Raatko ( **AN: aka Nyssa al Ghul** ) took me in when I was a child but I'm not blood related to anyone.

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Longshot

 _What's your civilian name?_ Cole Lawton

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Nope

 _What is your species?_ Human

 _How old are you?_ Nineteen

 _What are your powers?_ I just shoot stuff. Sometimes beat people up too.

 _What's your position in the team?_ I guess I'm ranked third on the overall totem pole and I'm in charge of Team Alpha.

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ Yeah, my dad's Deadshot.

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Lady Luck

 _What's your civilian name?_ Ebony Simone

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ ….

 _What is your species?_ Humanoid

 _How old are you?_ Fifteen

 _What are your powers?_ Look at my code name. If your still confused, I control chance. Also, I have some cat-like features.

 _What's your position in the team?_ What the heck am I supposed to put down here? It's not like we actively discuss rank outside of who was leader and who was in charge of the teams. But if you really want to know something, I'm part of Team Alpha.

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ Nope

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Glitch

 _What's your civilian name?_ Frieda Smith

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Freddie

 _What is your species?_ Human

 _How old are you?_ Around thirteen

 _What are your powers?_ Electro kinesis and I'm a technopath

 _What's your position in the team?_ I'm the hacking and information-gathering expert and member of Alpha

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ I don't think so

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Whiplash

 _What's your civilian name?_ Samuel Zolomon

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Yeah, call me Sam (no, Jessie, you can't call me Sammy. I don't care that we're basically a Supernatural episode waiting to happen)

 _What is your species?_ Meta

 _How old are you?_ Sixteen

 _What are your powers?_ Super speed

 _What's your position on the team?_ I'm the speed baby! Also, the second most important part in Cole's team (right after Cole).

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ I guess so… my dad's Zoom.

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Jester

 _What's your civilian name?_ Jessie Quinzel

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Jessie, Jess (just please don't call me JJ)

 _What is your species?_ I'm human…. Probably

 _How old are you?_ Twelve

 _What are your powers?_ I have numbed pain receptors, immune to several toxins, I'm also a certifiable crazy genius

 _What is your team position?_ I'm Riley's Number 1! And me and Glitch make most of the cool gadgets for the team.

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ Joker and Harley Quinn

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Beast

 _What's your civilian name?_ If you mean the name I have to put on legal documents, it's Delilah Grimm

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ I prefer to be called Raven

 _What is your species?_ I'm a Dark Witch

 _How old are you?_ Eighteen

 _What are your powers?_ What do you think a witch does?

 _What is your position in the team?_ I work mostly with upgrading and maintaining our transportation and mechanical things.

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ Nope

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Diablo

 _What's your civilian name?_ Alexander Grimm (It's the one Raven gave me. No one besides them gets to know my real name) (Des: How come I know it then?) (That is because you have been flirting around with my father for the last couple thousand years.) (Des: It's not flirting! He's been trying to kill me!)

 _Do you have any nicknames:_ Yes, most people call me Alex.

 _What is your species?_ I'm a demon.

 _How old are you?_ I'm not telling you

 _What are your powers?_ Shapeshifter, empath, magic. And unlike what Jessie would like to believe, I do not go around randomly possessing people.

 _What is your position on the team?_ I make sure that Raven stays alive.

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ I doubt that any of you would be personally familiar with my father yet.

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Witch Doctor

 _What's your civilian name?_ Marionette Page

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Mari

 _What is your species?_ Human/Necromancer

 _How old are you?_ Seventeen

 _What are your powers?_ Shadow magic, ability to communicate with the dead, partially raise the dead, divination, voodoo, etc. etc. etc.

 _What is your position on the team?_ I'm part of Des's team and I usually make potions and remedies to help heal the others.

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ No

* * *

 _What's your code name?_ Banshee

 _What's your civilian name?_ Mason Patten

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ (Sam: Sweet cheeks) (Scarlett: Cinnamon roll!) Stop answering for me you two!

 _What is your species?_ Meta human

 _How old are you?_ Sixteen

 _What are your powers?_ Stuff that'll kill you. (Sam: Unless you're as cool as me!) My bad, stuff that will kill you unless you're my sister or a lame speedster. (Sam: Hey!)

 _What is your position on the team?_ Part of Team Zhayedan

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ Me and Scarlett are twins

* * *

 _What is your code name?_ Siren

 _What is your civilian name?_ Scarlett Patten

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Umm… I guess Scar.

 _What is your species?_ I'm just an extremely sexy human

 _How old are you?_ Older than Mason (Mason: By a couple minutes!)

 _What are your powers?_ I have the power of seduction ;). Ok not really. I can basically take control of your body and make you do whatever the fuck I want. This can create blanks in your memories and possibly make you very nauseous when you regain control. I'm also naturally immune to Mason's powers.

 _What is your position on the team?_ I just follow Des's lead!

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ Just Mason

* * *

 _What is your code name?_ Noise

 _What is your civilian name?_ Rae Black (Don't _ever_ call me this)

 _Do you have any nicknames?_ Even when we're not in costume, everyone calls me Noise

 _What is your species?_ Why is this even on here? Aren't we all people? Well, except for Alex. He's just an asshole.

 _How old are you?_ Seventeen (yeah, I know I'm short)

 _What are your powers?_ Does my extreme intellect count as a power?

 _What is your position on the team?_ I'm not officially part of the Outcasts. I just hang around with them a lot. Now that I bring that up, why do I have to answer all these things?

 _Are you related to anyone we would know?_ No. I'm not related to anyone. Period.


	6. Breaking Out and Breaking Down

**Noise's POV**

When we burst through the doors, I expected a lot of things. Mad scientists, threatening looking technology, heavily armed guards, maybe some exam tables. Of course, all that was still there; it was just that the reality was much worse than what I thought up. Beside me, I felt the others freeze as they looked around the room. I couldn't blame them.

Cages and dog crates lined the walls filled with people. Some were whimpering, shaking, looking at us with frightful eyes. The blood froze in my veins as my eyes fell on the ones completely silent. They were just lying there with blank looks on their faces, eyes dull and skin bloated and bruised. Bitter bile built in my throat as I stared into the lifeless gray eyes of a girl that couldn't have been older than eight. Bloody fingers were twisted between the cage bars and her limp hand looked like she was trying to reach out. Shakily, I reach out to grab her wrist.

Her skin was cold. There was no pulse.

I'm distracted from the awful bile in my throat by a hand on my elbow. Looking down, I saw Jess looking up at me carefully. Realizing that he was saying something, I shook my head to try to clear it. "Sorry, what was that?"

"Swan wants us to get into the computers to see if there's more rooms like this and where they are."

Right. This was a mission. There was no time for feelings right now. Nodding my head, I dropped the girl's wrist and turned back to the rest of the lab.

As Jessie led me to the computers lined on the back wall, I take this chance to observe the room closer. All the guards and scientist laid lifelessly on the floor, probably thanks to Alex. The demon was standing completely still, hands clenched and black eyes burning as he stared down at the bodies. Raven was already doing their best to soothe him, petting his shoulders and arms and murmuring in his ear. He seems to snap out of whatever funk he was in and stiffly moved to help Swan to get the cages open.

Getting into the computers was fairly easy and it was child's play to get into the actual information. There were a couple secure files though - triple encrypted and all that extra jazz - that I got Jess started on before relating the needed information to Swan.

"Jester, Diablo, and Raven you stay here. Noise, You're with me," the assassin orders. "Alpha and Zhayedan will be here soon to help. Jester, Glitch will be able to help you with those files. I want you guys to get that whole hard drive. Everyone stay safe and get as many people out as possible."

Raven followed us to the door to act as a look out. I give their elbow a light squeeze as I passed them before falling behind Black Swan. There were three other rooms that looked like they had the same purpose as the lab we found Alex in. I started to give directions to the closest one.

Along the way, we swiftly took care of any guards that we encountered and tied up many of the fleeing scientists. We weren't able to nab all of them and when I went to pursue those that escaped, Swan gripped my arm and shook her head. Pushing down my anger, I continued to dish out directions.

The second lab looked exactly the same as the first, minus the unconscious guards and scientists. Without hesitating, we started opening cages, checking on the people inside them for injuries while both of us kept an eye on the door in case a stray staff member decided to come back.

I had just reached into a crate to help a young brunet down when the comms cracked to life.

 _"Both mine and Longshot's teams are here. Where do you want us?"_

Swan looked over at me and I give her a nod before continuing. She finished the lock she was on before taking a few steps back and giving some information to Des and Cole.

I'm startled out of my task when a hand lands on my arm. Swan stared down at me, hood blocking her eyes. "Come on, we have to go."

Nodding my head, I replied, "Okay just help me get her on my board."

She turned her critical gaze to the young woman I was holding. There were some gruesome bruises along her face and neck and she was struggling to breathe. I could tell that Swan didn't think she would make it. Feeling my anger rising, I snapped at her, "She still has a pulse. _Help me get her on the board_."

Her shoulders stiffen at my tone but she still leaned down next to me. Letting out a breath, I reached behind my back to unhook my hoverboard. I ran my hands over it, switching it on, before letting it hover a couple inches above the ground next to the woman.

"On the count of three… one, two, _three!_ "

Once we have her settled, Swan walked to the door way, giving orders to the former prisoners. Tuning her out, I fiddled with the board until it was high enough that I could comfortably grab the edge to guide it. I gave Swan a thumbs-up when she looked back at me and bent down to swoop up a young kid whose leg was clearly broken. He let out a small whimper from the movement but soon wrapped his arms tight around me and buried his head into my neck.

Swan led the group out into the hallway, double-checking to make sure the coast was clear before leading them in the direction of the entrance. I hung back to make sure there weren't any we had left behind.

We made a bunch of noise shuffling down the halls, but it seems like most of the security has been taken out, either by us or by members of the other two teams as they went to check the rest of the building. When we get to the stairways on the second floor, we met with the other group running from the first lab. As we started to merge, I spotted Swan making her way to the back.

I paused for a second as we got to the same step. She scanned the girl on the board and the kid I was holding before tilting her head to me.

"Longshot found Icicle Junior. Beast is leading the group and Luck and Banshee are outside too. Make sure to get these people in eyesight of the cops or the paramedics before bailing, got it?"

"Got it," I gritted out. Swan laid a hand on my shoulder for a second then charged back down the stairs. My eyes strayed after her for a second before I repositioned the kid in my arms and continued up.

Black Swan had a way of always getting on my nerves with her nose-in-the-air attitude to her 'You're going to ditch us the second you have a chance' remarks. I'll be the first to admit, I don't always have the same loyalties as the others, but I wish I could just get it through her head that I'm not just going to abandon a mission because it got tough or that I'm going to rat someone out. I get it isn't to the same extent as most of the others, but the Outcasts were still the closest thing I had to family.

When I finally got back fresh air, a warm figure immediately appeared next to me to take the kid out of my arms. I gave a thankful smile to Raven before guiding my board over to the side of the building. I lowered the board before gently taking the kid and setting him up against the wall. Giving him a small pat on the head, I turned back to Raven.

The witch started babbling as soon as they realized they got my attention. "The police are starting to arrive and we want to start sending the ones that can walk around to them but that'll mean someone is going to come back here and that'll b-."

"It'll be bad because you guys are still avoiding making contact with the police and if they send someone to investigate or get the rest, they're going to see at least one of you guys," I finished up their thought. Raven shot me small look but nodded her head nonetheless. Thinking, I asked, "Did Glitch and Jess finish up downloading the hard drive?"

"I think so. Why?"

"Tell Diablo and Whiplash to get ready to flash everybody out." Raven gave me an adorable head tilt but took a step away to get the message through the comms. When they stepped back, they helped me move the woman onto the ground. I unfasten my belts and took off my helmet and handed them to the brunet with my board.

"What are you planning?" They questioned as they reluctantly accepted my crap.

A grin stretched across my face and I gave them a wink. "I'm going to play victim for a little bit." I reached up to mess up my hair and clothes a little bit. Turning so I could also see Luck and Banshee, I raised my voice so they could hear me too. "You guys might want to shoo along. It's gonna get real busy around here soon."

The three of them exchanged glances but still moved away to the nearest back alley. I watched them as they slipped away into the darkness. Raven stopped and looked back before they follow them, and I waved at them before they disappeared. My grin slipped off my face as they left and my hand went limp to hang by my side. Closing my eyes, I gave myself a second before I launched into my performance.

"Help! Someone help! Please!"

Eighty-four minutes after someone finally answers my hysterical screaming, I'm able to slip out of the back of police car and away unnoticed. I let out a relieved sigh as I slipped into an alley and the noise started to fade into the background. God, that was so annoying. I travelled through a couple more alleys and back streets before deciding I had put enough distance between me and the crime scene. After finding a busy enough street, I hailed a taxi so I could head home. When I stumbled through the front door, I seriously considered just collapsing then and there just to avoid climbing the stairs. Before I could decide however, something tackled me to the ground.

A heavy weight settled on my chest and a long tongue started slobbering over my face. Letting out a laugh, I scratched the wolf's neck. Red yipped happily before continuing his attack. He was nice and warm and I just wanted to curl up and fall asleep right there. But if Red was here that meant his owner was here as well so, with great effort, I pushed him off me and made my way through the café to the stairs with him happily trotting behind me.

Unsurprisingly, I found the door to my actual apartment opened ajar. Red slid past me and I followed him into the comfy, familiar place. I shuffled to the couch and collapsed on it, scaring the sleeping black cat already on it back into consciousness. Letting out a yowl, he raced off. There's a big clatter before I heard the shower shutting off. Laughing, I settled myself down to wait.

I didn't have to wait long though as only a few minutes had past before I heard the bathroom door as it creaked open followed by light footsteps heading to the living room. Soon, a long, warm weight draped itself over me. Letting out a content hum, I allowed myself to sink deeper into the cushions.

"You know Alex doesn't like it when you pretend he's not there and just sit on him."

Snorting, I respond, "Well, that's what he gets for being an asshole and finding new ways to call me short."

I can feel Raven's laugh move through their body and I smiled at the feeling. We laid there in a comfortable silence for a few more seconds before Raven broke it again. This time their voice was softer. "Are you okay?"

Everything went still. A wave of images of the girl whose wrist I held flashed behind my eyelids. My breath gets caught in my chest and I snapped my eyes open, banishing the images yet failing to stop them from drowning me. I felt sadness because she had deserved better. Anger at the ones that killed her. Grief because she deserved more days. Guilt, frustration, fear, disgust, shame. The list went on and on. It was just too much and it wouldn't _stop_.

Suddenly very aware of the fingers running through my hair, I jerk away from the feeling, making forest green eyes filled with concern replace the piece of ceiling I was staring at. Raven's lips were moving but I failed to focus enough to make out what they were saying. My hands flailed before hitting something solid and grasping onto it. The feeling grounded me enough for me to start to understand what was being said to me.

"Breathe, Noise. Deep breaths. In two three, out two three. In two three, out two three."

Their voice calmed me and I forced myself to follow their instructions. After a minute, they gently pried their wrists out of my grasp before sitting up, pulling me up with them, and shifting us around so I was basically straddling them. As soon as we settled down, I wrapped my arms around Raven and buried my face into their shoulder. In return, arms wrapped around my waist and they started to rub my back with one hand.

"You know nothing that happened in that lab was your fault, right?" Alex drawled, appearing suddenly in his usual human form by the foot of the couch. I turned my face enough to glare at him.

Raven releases a heavy sigh, her hand dragging down. "What he _meant_ to say is that you did a good job tonight."

"I doubt that's what he was trying to say," I snorted. Alex made a small sound of confirmation as he settled himself next to us. Red whined pitifully and nudged our sides with his nose. Unwrapping one arm, I used it to rub his head. Looking into his brown eyes to avoid green and black ones, I askec, "If I did a good job, why do I feel like this?"

"You put too much on responsibility on yourself, leading yourself to falsely blame yourself for events completely out of your control."

"Alex, shut up," Raven snapped at him, words cold and sharp. Their hold on me tightened before completely disappearing. Even as they pulled back, I kept my eyes on Red. They released another sigh and gently grasped my chin to look up at them as they continued. "You feel like crap because you're a decent human being. You care about others and you don't want innocent people to get hurt. I'm also guessing it has something to do about your dad's business?"

I diverted my eyes.

"I feel like this goes back to my point," Alex piped up.

This time, Raven smacked him lightly upside the head. "What did I say?"

Despite the turmoil going on inside my head, I couldn't help but crack a smile at the small act of violence. When they turned back to me, Raven cleared their throat. "Even though Alex isn't exactly wrong, he could have said that in a better fashion. Your dad is a grown ass man who just also happens to be a giant twat. He knows exactly what he's doing providing money and weapons to the people he does. His actions have nothing to do with you."

Shame ran through my veins. "You know that's not true. I had the chance to stop him and I didn't take it."

Raven paused, looking blankly at some point over my head. Their response was slow and careful, "You had a hard choice to make. It's not a bad thing that self-preservation won out at the end."

I didn't believe their words. They knew I didn't believe it. But we've been around this rodeo enough times to know that we weren't going to agree, at least not any time soon, so we don't continue the subject.

Resting my head back on their shoulder, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Even though Raven just took a shower, they still smelt like crushed leaves and earth. Soon, their arms rewind around me and the back rubbing continued. We fall backwards until Raven's head was resting in Alex's lap. He let out a small grunt but still relaxed under us and rested a hand next to one of Raven's on my back. Surrounded by their combined warmth, I soon slipped into sleep.

* * *

When I went back to the labs early the next day, it was still surrounded by the police. I parked the bike down the street to observe. I couldn't see Baldy or any of his business partners but I would bet that he would give a public statement soon. As I continue to scan the crowd, my eyes landed on a black clad figure.

My breath caught in my throat as the Bat's head turned towards me. Forcing myself to remain calm, I flipped my visor down on my helmet before starting the bike again. Turning the bike out of the spot, I drove away from the scene. But even as I turned the corner, I could still feel his eyes on me.

* * *

 **Hello again beasties! Thank you again for reading! I hope you are having semi-pleasant time while you read this fic. Please write me a review or a PM about what you like, what you didn't like, ideas you may have, whose your favorite character, whose your most hated character, literally anything. I live off your guys' feedback and I will most likely respond withing a couple days. Anyway back on track, this work is now being beta-read by the lovely gregorybryce9 so please give them some applause. (also if you leave a comment thanking them, they'll probably appreciate it ;). And with that, we conclude this author's note. Hope you all have a wonderful day (or night)! Auf Wiedersehen!**


	7. What's the Glitch?

**Freddie's POV**

"You think that the League is onto us!?"

I scrunched up my nose at Jessie's loud exclamation and glanced quickly around the room. Most of the others were already upstairs but Sam, Cole, and Des were still in the basement talking with Cameron. Luckily, they mainly didn't seem to hear Jessie's outburst but I did see Des flinch. Letting out a breath through my nose, I turned back to the monitors.

Tapping my foot under the desk, I replied to the younger blond. _'No, I just said that the alert I had for them went off.'_

His green eyes narrowed at me. "But you have that alert set for if something that involves us or sounds like us enters their system."

 _'Or for anything that warrants an investigation in Bludhaven,'_ I try to calm him. _'How about you check out what caused the alert and I continue sorting through these files?'_

Jessie frowned at me, but I just smiled back at him until he let out a huff and threw his hands in the air. "Fine!" He spun around in his chair a couple more times before settling and racing his fingers across the keyboard. Letting out a laugh, I turned back to my own screen and got to work. "Oh, shit."

Surprised, I push myself next to Jessie. A frown stretched across my face as I viewed the document and where it originated. As I kept scrolling, I realized that this was very not good. Turning back to where Jessie was continuing to freak out I tried to get his attention. I finally gained it by kicking him in the shin. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Des start making her way towards us.

 _'I thought you liked Batman?'_ I signed at him confusedly.

"Well yeah," he replied like it was obvious. "He's way better than Captain Underpants and most of the others. But that doesn't change the fact that he might make me go back to my dad!"

I tilt my head at him. _'Why would he make you go back to your dad?'_ He let out a frustrated sound, clutching his hair, and buried his head into his knees. By then, Des has finally made her way behind us so I directed my question to her. _'Why would Batman make Jessie go back to his dad?'_

She blinks slowly at me before glancing down and putting a calming hand on Jessie's back. "He wouldn't do it on purpose but he might place Jessie in a position where it would be easy for his dad or mom to get to him." Her eyebrows furrow and a frown appeared on her face. "Why? What prompted this conversation?"

Tilting the screen towards her, I replied, _'It seems like Batman has started to gather information on us. He doesn't have a lot though, and it doesn't seem like he has shared it with the rest of the League yet.'_

I felt Des freeze next to me. She took a deep breath before straightening up. "Do you think he might know that we have Cameron?"

 _'I don't think so. We erased all the information on the computers but there could have been something that slipped through the cracks.'_

"That's something at least," Des sighed, rubbing the back of her neck. A troubled look appeared on her face but its gone as soon as its there. "Did you finish going through the stuff you got from the labs?"

"Mostly," Jessie grunts, finally peering up from his legs. Stretching out, he leans over me to get to my area. I retaliate for disrespecting my personal space by poking him in the side. "Freddie still has to do a couple more things before we're completely done."

Offended that he made it sound like it was completely my fault we weren't done yet (I had the bigger work load to start with), I gave him a shove. He yelps as he's dislodged from his chair and I lean over to stick my tongue out at him. Looking back up at Des, who stood there with an amusement in her eyes, I signed, _'It shouldn't take me that long. Two hours max.'_

Shaking her head fondly, she replied, "I think the rest can wait until tomorrow. You two should head to bed, it's getting pretty late." Jessie cheered, jumping from the floor and racing to the stairs. I was a little more hesitant. I hated leaving work unfinished and it wasn't like we had any school tomorrow. I could shove the sleepiness down for a little while longer, I could finish, sleep late, and double check everything before going out for patrol again.

Almost like she was reading my thoughts (or watching my emotions closely), Des huffed and pulled my chair away from the desk to push me out towards the middle of the room. "Oh, no honey. When I said you should go to bed, I meant that you are going to bed." Gripping the armrests tightly, I looked up at her with pleading eyes, not caring if I was acting a little childish. But Des had her 'no-arguments' face on. "Freddie. Go. To. Bed. It'll still be there tomorrow. I promise that no one is going to touch it." I let out the closest thing I could to a whine and stood up reluctantly. Des ruffled my hair before I started trudging my way up the stairs and out of the basement.

When I passed the living room, I noticed that the light was still on. Curious, I poked my head through the doorway. Riley was lying on the couch. Her face scrunched up in thought while she rubbed her hands together. She must've heard my footsteps because she turned away from her glaring contest with the ceiling and gave me a tired smile.

"Des make you come upstairs?"

Letting out a puff of air, I gave her an affirmative nod. Riley chuckles at my disappointed mood. Quieting down, her face twists again. "Jessie told me that the League has some information on us."

 _'Batman actually. It didn't look like he shared it with the rest of the League yet.'_ I signed to her. Confused, I ask, _'Why is everyone so afraid of the League. Aren't they the good guys?'_

"If you want to get technical, then yes, they are the good guys," Riley stated. "We're worried about them because we don't follow the rules like they do."

I frowned. _'But we share a common end goal.'_

"Yes, but they won't see it like that. They'll see a bunch of criminals doing some questionable things."

 _'They want to arrest us because we do things differently than them?'_

Riley sighed and scrubbed her face with her hands. "In a way, yes. But they only want to arrest some of us like Cole and I. Otherwise, they will separate the rest of you and most likely put all of you into the system."

My blood froze in my veins and I stared at her. I felt my hands shaking by my side and I clenched them in an attempt to stop. ' _They can't do that! We're a family!'_

"It doesn't matter Freddie, to them we're just a bunch of thugs taking care of children we shouldn't have gotten custody of," she grits out. She looked up after her rant and her eyes softened when they landed on me. Standing up, she quickly strode across the room to pull me into a hug. I felt her pet my hair as I cry into her stomach. "It's okay, _najmay_ **(1)** , neither Des or I will let that happen," she crooned.

Sniffling, I asked, _'What about Cole?'_

Her body shakes as she laughed. "Oh, I'm sure he has something very special planned for the heroes just for making you scared."

* * *

 **1-** Arabic for 'my star'


	8. Background Story- Raven and Alex

**Okay, this is going to be a long one and it's not fully connected to the actual story, so you can skip it if you want. But if you want to get some info about Raven and Alex, then this is where to get it. I actually started to write this a while ago, even before I started to write the Outcasts so you'll see I developed Raven's (and to some extent Alex's) character a lot since then. Also you get to see another part of Raven's personality that isn't really shown in the rest of the chapters.** **To be honest, this is kind of a filler chapter while I'm working on the actual next chapter but I think background stories like these can help people get some insight into the characters. I'm going to post at least one more chapter like this and it will almost definitely be Noise's because her's is so connected to Raven and Alex. So I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

 **Another Fairy Tale**

Ever since I was little, I knew I was cursed.

It wasn't because I had the worse luck of anyone I knew or that I felt like an outsider anywhere I went. Nor was it because I was always in the wrong place at the wrong time. I just _knew_. My dad also knew, so he tried to prepare me for whatever was wrong with me.

My dad also tried to prepare my sister for her curse but she just laughed and thought they were playing or got scared when he read her a bedtime story. Then Mom came in and discussed (yelled) at him for filling our heads with make-believe. She heard the stories from Grandpa, Dad's dad, and thought they were a load of crap. Mom couldn't possibly understand the meaning behind them.

I should explain a little bit. I'm a Grimm. The Grimms have been cursed generations, even before Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. Our curses have been varied throughout each generation, one never like another, that is until the Grimm Brothers. Their curse was to write down our curses. You may have heard of Grimm fairytales, they're our curses. My dad's and his sister's story was Hansel and Gretel. Thankfully they both lived through _that_.

I should also tell you something else, Grimms are technically, what do you say, witches. Yes, we have magic, we just haven't used it in a very long time. The curse probably left a sour taste in my ancestors' mouths. Now we just use magic to help end our curses for a little while and never look at it or use it again. Today, we just pretend we're just like everyone else: boring. You could say there is nothing wrong with being boring but I would beg to differ. Why be boring when you could be something amazing? But what do I know, I'm just a kid.

* * *

I was about to head out when the front door banged open. Jumping back to avoid a broken nose, I glared at my sister before I could take in her appearance. Her nearly perfect look was replaced by a frazzled and scared one. Switching immediately into my overprotective sister mode, I pulled her inside.

"What happened? Are you ok?" I asked worriedly.

"Ms. Klein's-" she cut off as an emerald tumbled from her lips and onto the floor. My blood ran cold as I looked at it.

"Tell me what happened. Now."

Through a lot of sniffles and sobs, and some astonished yelling when Mom came out of the kitchen and saw the gems and the flowers, this is what I could make out: Eve went over to Ms. Klein's, a cranky old lady that Eve was helping out around the house for. When Ms. Klein went upstairs for a nap a man appeared in the kitchen, saying he was Ms. Klein's son. After some small talk, he ended up attacking her and almost… _raped_ her. Thankfully, Ms. Klein stepped in before things got too out of hand. Unthankfully, she made Eve agree to not say anything about the incident before saying she was a nice girl and sent her on her way home.

The story had me furious on several different levels. The biggest one, and the most obvious, was that my little sister almost got raped! Then she promised she wouldn't say anything about it! That alone justified me going over to the Klein's residence to punch both of them in their faces before having them arrested.

Storming over to their house, only a block away, I don't even bother knocking on the door. No one should expect me to do anything remotely polite when I'm mad, it's just a common fact. It's also a common fact that I express my anger physically. That is why when a middle-aged guy with dark hair came down the stairs, no doubt to yell at me for charging into his house, I just soccer punched him in the nose. Hard.

I think it broke.

The man let out a shout, stumbling back into the wall. I followed him, about to let loose another one, when Ms. Klein charged around the corner. Ms. Klein was a stout old woman that barely reached my shoulder with a face that made it look like she sucked on one to many lemons. She also despised me with a passion.

"Young lady, what in the world do you think you're doing?" She spat at me.

I sneered at her. "I think I'm doing what my sister should have done and showing your son that it is not okay for him to attack young girls! Or anyone for that matter!"

Ms. Klein stilled for a second before raising a finger at me. Oh no, she found my greatest fear, old women fingers (note the sarcasm). "Your sister and I came to an agreement, missy. It was just a big misunderstanding."

"Big misunderstanding my ass," I shouted. "Tell me how your son shoving his hand down my _thirteen-year-old sister's_ _shirt_ a fucking misunderstanding?!"

"Young lady, I will not tolerate such crude words," she said, emphasizing each word with a jab of her finger.

This just got me even angrier. "I really don't give a damn about what you think right now!"

Ms. Klein's posture went rigid, her face telling me I crossed a line. Her next words are what really stopped me though. "You are cross and ill-bred. From now on toads and snakes will leap out of your mouth whenever you speak."

She said them. She said those words. Words that I had memorized in preparation years ago and read a thousand time. Words that filled me with anxiety and made me pull my hair out. Now I finally heard them out loud.

My yelling choked off and I look at Ms. Klein with wide eyes. Bile rose up in my throat as I stumbled back. Getting my bearings, I spun around and ran out of the house. I kicked dirt up behind me as I sprinted across her yard and onto the street.

 _She said the words._

My lungs were on fire before I was back home but I pushed myself to keep going. I skidded to a halt before I slammed into the door. I looked at the aged wood and tried to control my breathing before gently pushing it open.

Eve's sobs reached my ears as I close the door. I pictured her baby blue eyes sparkling with tears and a pile of gems and blossoms by her feet. Mom would be wearing out the carpet with her pacing and her face would still be starch white. I didn't want to face them right then and there but it's not like I had any other choice.

Their matching blue eyes looked up at me as I entered the living room and I saw that I was right. Sometimes I hate being right. Eve jumped up from the couch and hugged me. I rubbed her back as she sobbed into my shoulder but I didn't say anything. My gut twisted and I clenched my eyes shut, forcing back any of my own tears.

"What happened?" My mom asked nervously.

Forcing my sister away, I carefully stared at her. Sighing, I replied, "You should've listened to Dad more. He was right."

It didn't feel as weird as I thought it would. The sliminess only lasted for a second before the snake dropped to the carpeted floor. My mom and my sister looked at it horrified while I bent down to scoop it up. After the shock wore off, I knew Mom would flip about having a snake loose in the house. Not even if was as adorable and as harmless as this one.

"No, no, no, no, no," Eve whimpered hoarsely. "Not you too!"

Uncut rubies and diamonds tumbled from her lips with each word. One of the sharper corners of one of the diamonds scratched her bottom lip and I couldn't help but wince when I saw blood start to bead. Guilt curled inside me. This should've been my curse and my curse alone, Eve was too innocent to be wrapped up in this.

"Its fine, I can fix this," I promised, trying to soothe her. This time a toad hopped out and I quickly grabbed it before it could hop away.

My mom disgusted face soon turned into one of anger. "How are you going to fix this Delilah? With that ridiculous story book? Don't fill her head with hope, we have to come up with a logical plan."

I narrowed my eyes at her for calling Dad's family heirloom a silly book. The book was way more than that, it was our history, our present, and most likely, our future. It was also the key to fixing this.

"A logical plan? For this? Do you not remember anything Dad said?" I asked her, growling.

"It was just gibberish," she replied. "I didn't think he was actually serious about any of that."

As I opened my mouth to yell at her more, I heard whimpering. Snapping my mouth shut, I looked at Eve. She was a mess. Her blonde hair was falling out of her ponytail, her cheeks were flush and stained with tears, and her lip was still bleeding. She was absently plucking at the daisy she was holding.

"Can you really fix it?" She asked quietly. Doubt started to creep out again. I knew if there was a way to fix it, it would be in the book but there was also a slim chance that it wouldn't be. There was also a chance that I couldn't perform whatever task I had to do.

 _No._ I scolded myself. _Nothing is too much to fix this for her._ Gathering my confidence, I gave her a nod. She gave me the most hopeful look that I'd ever seen, and my heart started to break. I had to fix this.

* * *

The house was quiet, save for a few leftover sniffles and sobs from my sister, by the time I shoveled my way to the back of my father's study. My eyes scanned the dusty books before landing on a familiar thick book on the top shelf. I pulled it off before dropping it onto the desk.

Running my hand over the cover, I let the familiar feeling of cracked leather calm me before I flipped it open. The Grimoire was stuffed with fairy tales, potions, and spells. I frantically scanned each page, looking for something that would help with this damned curse. I let out a shout in frustration as the words started to rearrange themselves. Yet another frog jumped from my lips and I moved quickly to pick it up and place it the trashcan by my feet. That would hold it until I could let it loose outside. Annoyed, I looked back at the page and almost let out a curse in surprise.

 _Hello._

I stared shocked at the page. Not knowing what to do, I answered back. "Hello?" The word broke apart and more letters shuffled together as a lizard plopped into my hand.

 _If you're looking for something to break that curse of yours, I would give up now._ The letters hesitated for a second as I cursed before reforming again. _But I can make you a deal: I'll get rid of you and your sisters' curse if you let me out of this book and start practicing your family trade again._

My eyes narrowed. Crossing my arms, I growled, "You know, this is starting to remind me of Tom Riddle's dairy a little too much to make me feel comfortable."

 _…I don't know what that means._

"It means," I bit out, catching the snake slithering from my lips. It was a longer one and it decided to get comfortable around my arm. "That I'm getting a feeling that you're trying to screw me over and I don't like it."

 _Hmm, maybe I am, maybe I'm not. But you don't have many options here and not a lot to lose._

My face scrunched up as I read those words. That didn't comfort me at all…. But it was right. Chewing on my lip, I let out a defeated sigh. "Fine, what do I need to do?"

I could feel whatever was in the book grinning at me. _To start with, a couple drops of blood please._

Thirty minutes and a bloody hand later, I was staring at the crow perched on the desk. I faintly recognized that the house got eerily quiet, but I was too busy keeping an eye on the midnight black bird. It hopped closer to me and focused its beady eyes on me. Somehow, I knew it wanted me to hold out my hand but I still didn't trust it. It tilted its neck and gave me a 'really?' look. Huffing, I hesitantly held out my injured hand.

The demon let out a trill of satisfaction before stretching its neck so it could reach my hand. As it rubbed its head against the open cut, I felt a tug on my core. I watched in a mixture of amazement, curiosity, and slight disgust as the skin on my hand stitched itself back together.

"Okay," I whispered, pulling back my hand. "That was kinda wicked."

Its feathers puffed up in pride. Before I could huff out a laugh, a tickle of confusion wormed itself into my brain, one that I knew was not my own. Gasping in surprise, I demanded, "What the hell was that?!"

"That would be me." I let out another shout as a rich voice answered me.

Glaring up at the now amused looking bird, I stabbed my finger at it. "I don't care if you're a demon or not but a raven should not sound like that!"

If he had eyebrows, I knew he would've raised them. "What did you think I would sound like?"

"I don't know?! High pitch and squeaky? Maybe raspy? I don't know, whatever ravens sound like!"

"Well sorry to disappoint but I'm not actually a raven."

"I know that! But you still look like one!"

"I can change my appearance into anything that I want," the demon's feathers started to smooth together and harden while it's shape elongated. "A snake," this time it grew bigger, "a wolf," it's bones cracked as it moved to stand on it's hind legs. A second later, black eyes stared up at me from behind some fringe. "Or even a human child"

Masking my uncomfortableness at the demon's display, I gave him a blank stare. "Cool, that means you can be the ultimate stalker, just what every girl wants."

The little boy's eyes narrowed and his cruel smile slipped into a mean frown. "Can you express anything else other than sarcasm?"

"Nooo," I rolled my eyes at him. This time I felt a flare of annoyance. I tried to distract myself from feeling the other's feelings. "By the way, is there anything I can call you so I don't have to keep on referring to you as 'demon' in my head?"

"I do have a name, but most choose not to use it anymore," the demon replied coolly, crossing his thin arms.

I stared at him before shaking my head. "Okay, that's definitely cool and not creepy at all. What am I supposed to call you then?"

"Anything you want. But I am a male demon, so I'd rather not have you name me 'Sophia' or anything frivolous like that."

Good to know. "Well, you sound snooty enough to be an Alexander. Maybe I'll call you Alex for short."

The newly name Alex tilted his head at me. "Has anyone ever told you that you are an odd child?"

"Oh, man, you don't even know half of it," I barked out a laugh. Scratching the back of my neck, I continued, "Well, I should probably check up on Eve. Can you make yourself into something, I don't know, a little less noticeable?"

Alex gave me a snort. "Of course I can."

When he gave no move to actually transform, or shape-shift, or whatever word it was for that thing he did, I asked slowly, "Will you?"

"Fine."

With one last sigh, he began to shrink. In the next second, a mouse stood where a boy once was. Trying not to coo at him, I bent down and picked him up. This caused the snake still wrapped around my arm to hiss so I had to wrestle Alex into my pocket while I untangled the snake and placed it on the desk. It gave me an unhappy look but still moved to wrap itself around the lamp. I gave it one last pat before leaving the office.

Calling for Eve, I ran around the house in my excitement. I found her in the living room staring confusedly at her hands. When I jumped in front of her, she let out a surprised squeak but made sure she didn't say anything. Grabbing her hands and hoisting her up, I grinned widely at her.

"Say something, anything."

She looked at me quizzically before her eyes widen comically. "You- you did it?"

Seeing no glittering gems or soft flowers, I felt a grin stretch across my face. Touching her lips in surprise, Eve looked at me with an amazed expression before giggling softly. Soon, we both are a pile of laughs and fast chatter. Eve started to pull me around the room in an awkward dance, both of us singing off pitch to the radio in the kitchen. In the back of my head, I felt Alex's annoyance at the sudden movements.

Muffled clomping of feat reach my ears and I twirled in time to see Mom rush to the doorway. Her steel eyes filled with shock as she looked at us, singing and dancing, before her lips spread out into a warm smile. She rushed over to hug us and, for the first time in what seemed like forever, I melted into her embrace. The moment only lasted for a second before she pulled away and started to rapidly ask me questions.

My smile slowly faded as my stomach clenches. Rubbing the back of my neck, I shifted my weight to one foot then to the other one. Picking up on my uneasiness, my mother's face slowly changed from joyful to suspicious.

"Delilah, what did you do?"

I found that I couldn't look her in the eyes while I answered. "I made a deal."

"You made a deal with what?" She asks slowly. Alex dug his claws into my side in warning but I already knew not to tell my mother the whole truth.

"With the Grimoire." Her hands covered her mouth in shock and I quickly continued. "All I have to do is use it from time to time. That's it Mom, I promise. Nothing evil or cultish, I swear." There's was a little amusement at the last part.

Mom's eyes turned cold. "Delilah can I talk to you alone in your room for a second."

A string of fear wormed its way to my stomach. Nodding, I gave Eve the warmest smile I could muster before following Mom out into the hallway. My fear and nervousness grew with each passing second of silence as we walked up the stairs and the short distance to my room.

I closed the door softly behind me before cautiously taking a seat on the corner of my bed. Mom pulled out my desk chair, a black rolling thing, and sat across from me. More silence. I opened my mouth to say something but Mom closed her eyes and waved her hand, effectively shutting me up.

"What made you think making that deal was a smart idea Delilah?" She started in a low, dangerous tone. Knowing the question was rhetorical, I kept my mouth firmly shut, not wanting my smart-ass mouth to get me in more trouble then I already was.

"Do you know what you just did? You made a deal with the one thing that made your Dad's whole family, including your sister, miserable." She closed her eyes and pressed her hands together like she was praying. "Please, please tell me there is another way."

"I already made the deal," I replied quietly.

Her eyes snapped open and in the next moment, she was pacing around my room. "Then don't fill it. There is no way I'm going to let you practice magic."

I shook my head and replied ruefully, "Unless you want me and Eve to keep spitting things up, then I have to."

My eyes followed Mom for a few minutes. We were both silent for different reasons; she was thinking and I was trying to figure out how mad she was. Finally, she stopped pacing and turned, her eyes fixing on me. I didn't like the look she had, it looked like she came to a decision and was going to stick by it but it also contained a hint of sorrow. I braced myself for the future blow. But it never came.

"Leave."

Gapping at her in confusion, I asked dumbly, "What?

She faltered for a second and I felt a little hope. Hope that was immediately crushed. "If you are going to be practicing magic," she practically spat the word. "Then you aren't going to be doing it in this house. If you are so determined that this is the only way, I want you out."

"Mom, what are y-"

"I want you out by Sunday. That's final." With that, she turned and walked out of the room with the door slamming behind her.

A little nose pushed itself out of my pocket. The rest of Alex's head soon followed. "Well, she's isn't a very pleasant woman, is she?" I couldn't reply. My head was spinning.

Did she just kick me out? I knew she was going to have a bad reaction but I never expected it would be to this extent. Of course, I knew I was a handful sometimes, usually more than a handful, I got hit enough times to prove that, but I never thought she would just throw me out. Surely she would come back in and apologize, saying she overreacted. But the longer I stared at the door the more apparent it became she wasn't coming back. Soon my confusion turns into anger.

She wanted me out by Sunday, which gave me two days to get my stuff together. I could do her one better and be out by the next morning.

Jumping off my bed, I pull out my duffle bag, my suitcase, and my backpack. The duffle bag was starting to fall apart but it wasn't something a little duct tape couldn't fix. Shuffling through my closet, I made sure to only pack the things that I used my own money to buy which apparently is most of my stuff. Thankfully, Alex let me pack in peace, silently observing me from where he perched on the desk. With my bags mostly stuffed, I threw in my extra blanket and pillow and a few pictures of Eve and I and one of us with Dad before I flipped my mattress. Finding the hidden tear in the bottom, I reached in there and grabbed a thick bundle: my rainy-day money. And boy, wasn't today the rainiest of days.

After dumping out all the school supplies, I put the money in the backpack before going up to the door and putting my ear to it. Hearing nothing, I quickly slid outside and down the stairs. Laughter and small chatter floated down the hall from the kitchen, making my heart clench, but I ignored the feeling and turned the opposite way to the office. I gently grabbed the Grimoire off the desk, thanking my lucky stars that Mom didn't come in here and throw it away, and was about to leave when I heard a ribbit. Glancing down, I saw the toad was still in the waste basket and the snake was still coiled around the lamp.

I carefully turn over the basket and watched as the toad hopped out. Mom could deal with it. The snake was another issue. Holding my hand out towards it, I waited until it unwound itself before picking it up and placing itself around my shoulders. I let out a little laugh as it soon made itself comfortable. I tried to make my way out again before something out of the corner of my eye caused me to freeze.

Weaving my way through the haphazardly stacked boxes, I reached the far wall of the room. Hanging on the blue walls was a family picture I barely remember being taken. I was five when the picture was taken, Eve was almost two, and Dad was still alive. In the picture, we looked like a big happy family and we were, back then. It would be a couple years before things took a turn for the worse and one more till Dad died. In the picture, I was sitting on his lap, both of our brown hair looking crazy and green eyes filled with laughter, and Mom was holding Eve, who was practically a miniature version of her, still is, and a wide smile adorned her face. It's been a really long time since I saw her smile like that.

Forcing my eyes away from the picture and my mind from the past I looked down. Our old coat rack, a cool black iron one, stood underneath the picture with a lone coat hanging from it. The coat was made from cracked black leather but it had a thick lining and when I picked it up, I could faintly still smell Dad on it. It was a couple sizes too large for me but I found myself slipping it on any way.

With Dad now wrapped around me, I took the Grimoire and made my way upstairs again.

I wait an hour after I hear both Eve and Mom go to bed to drag my things downstairs to the garage. It's not surprising that I had to pay for my own car, Mom was too cheap. So just before I turned sixteen, I bought an old blue truck from someone who was just about to sell it for scrap metal. I brought it home and started to fix it up so it was not a complete eye sore and that it could go over ten miles again. I poured my blood, sweat and tears (figuratively and metaphorically) into my baby. It saw me through some tough situations before and I hope it was going to see me through this one.

Alex hopped his way into the front seat while I stuffed the duffle and the suitcase into the trunk along with my tools and stowed the backpack under the passenger seat. Getting in the driver's seat, I started the car and got halfway down the driveway before I stopped. It felt like I was forgetting something very important. Or someone.

Growling at my emotions, I put the car into park and climbed out. Making sure my feet were as light as a cat, I slipped into the house again and to my room. Excuse me, my old room. Pulling out a piece of notebook paper, I jot down a quick note saying I was leaving. I contemplated saying why I was leaving but decided against it, thinking Mom would make something up to tell her about my absence. Folding the paper up and slipping it under Eve's door, I raced back outside and into the car.

"Got everything taken care of?" Ignoring the demon, I pulled out into the road.

There was only one place in the city that I could go that I knew I would be taken care of, Mick's. Mick was a middle-age man with laugh lines on the corner of his eyes and graying hair. He owned a restaurant in downtown but had a couple other shadier businesses in his pocket too. Mick was the guy any poor kid went to to make money quick and he looked after his people. In the past, I fixed up his cars and ran messages for him. He would let me stay in the Loft.

The Loft was located above the restaurant and was usually packed with kids who either didn't want to go home or didn't have a home to go back too. It was cozy but it was crowded and I wouldn't have a lot of privacy while I was there. Which could prove to be a problem with Alex but I had to make it work.

I always did.


End file.
